Monday, February 22, 2010

There are three things all real Texans love: high school football, executing people, and the King Ranch casserole. From what I hear, it's impossible to go to any sort of potluck and not see one of these.

I love posting about these regional culinary favorites, especially when no one knows for sure where the name came from. It allows me to put forth my own, often ridiculous, theory. There is indeed a King Ranch in Texas – they say it's one of the most famous ranches in the world, but as far as claiming credit for inventing this casserole goes, they're not interested. You can't really blame them…a legendary cattle ranch the birthplace of a famous chicken recipe? I don't think so.

Here's what I bet happened. You don’t build a cattle ranch without making a few enemies along the way. To get revenge, someone invented this dish and called it the King Ranch casserole just to annoy them. It was a brilliant plan. Without firing a shot, or bloodying a knuckle, they inflicted the ultimate cattleman humiliation.

Regarding this recipe, I have a few things to explain. I'm testing it for the cookbook, and so I wanted to stay true to the original formula, which explains the cans of soup. Also, as you'll hear me say in the video, I tried to add an extra layer of tortilla on the bottom, which was a mistake. It threw off the meat to grain to condensed soup ratio. Two layers are plenty; so if you make it, take note.

Lastly, since condensed soup is dangerously high in sodium, I didn't add any, but after sampling I decided that it did need some after all. Best to taste the sauce mixture and decide for yourself. Enjoy!

Looks good Chef! Which is surprising b/c I am the only Texan who doesn't like King Ranch Chicken. I make something similar with ground beef though lol. Anyway, I came on today to browse your soup recipes b/c we need something warm today. So far we have 2 inches of snow and we are working towards 6!

Norma Rae needed to come up with a dish for the church potluck, something special that would show up Edna Gladney's green bean casserole (bless her heart) for good.

Norma Rae knew that her chicken á la king recipe brought all the boys to her yard, as they used to say in Gunbarrel City. Her housekeeper, Consuela, made perfect huevos rancheros.

No kitchen slouch, Norma Rae combined the best of both recipes. Subsequently she was crowned queen bee of the Gunbarrel City First Baptist Ladies' Circle, and King Ranch Chicken Casserole became a Texas legend.

The use of canned soup in casseroles goes back at least to the mid-1950s, with Campbell's highly successful marketing campaign that encouraged American housewives to include their products in casserole recipes. Over the years, it's practically become tradition.

By all means, go ahead and make béchamel sauce from scratch instead. It will be delicious, but it won't be King Ranch casserole.

I made this the other day and it was amazing! Thank you for sharing. The only problem I had was that mine didn't come out in a whole piece like lasagna would when you cut it (like your photo), it was sloppy and just fell onto my plate like soup. What do you think could've happened?

I'm from Malaysia and I absolutely LOVE your recipes. I plan to try this one out soon for a potluck with friends but I'm kinda sure I won't be able to find ancho chile and chipotle powders in our supermarkets here.

Would you be able to suggest a substitute for these [eg. Cayenne or cajun powders] or can I use something asian instead like regular chilli powder or curry powder?

this is good. i accidentally put in about 4 or 5 times the ancho chili powder and forgot the sour cream. it was still good. i might do less chicken broth or strain the tomatoes next time, i had too much sauce at the end, and it could be thicker (though that may be the sour cream missing). and maybe sauteing the onions. i like the raw peppers but the onions are a little too overpowering. i like how your recipes make me experiment.

rotisserie chicken is brilliant. though i have a hard time not just snacking while i'm picking it apart. thanks,jake

Chef John it's nice to see that you can afford to spring for the fancy designer corn tortillas! Im buying a bunch of your Mise en place shirts for my friends who were in the cooking club I started last year in highschool. (I died laughing when i read it)I'm a huge Alton Brown fan and I was wondering if you were gonna do any more shirt designs that focus on the science of food?Hope your doing well!

Chef John. As a proud American your comment "There are three things all real Texans love: high school football, executing people, and the King Ranch casserole." Made me feel sick and ashamed. I will no longer come to this site, and I will tell my congregation to pray for your soul.

Then again it seems less than intelligent people tend to take jokes completely seriously >.>

And just in case you couldn't tell I was being sarcastic.

Anyways all that aside. I tried the king ranch chicken casserole although because my mom walked in on me I had to quickly hide the cream of mushroom and sub it for another cream of chicken. Not too sure if that may have altered the flavor too much but regardless it turned out fabulous. Although you were right about it possibly need a touch more salt.

My son, Anthony, and I are trying this recipe for the first time. Our store sells the Ro-Tel tomatoes in 2 sizes--10 ounce and 28 ounce (you know how Wegmans is...). Which is appropriate for this recipe?

Since i've tried your recipe once it's still my favourite dish EVER! i received a lot of compliments for this recipe and i can't thank you enough! don't worry i tell my guests that YOU are the real chef behind this sublime dish! of all the youtube and blogs chefs you are really the best! have a nice day Chef John!

hey John,i grew up in America and know those "cream of blah blah" soups very well, but lived in Austria for over 22 years now and frankly never seen them here.... any idea how i can modify the recipes without ruining it? I was thinking of like sauteeing mushrooms and adding a shit-ton of creme freshe and sourcream and like onion/garlic granulate. most of those cream based quicky-soups were nothing more than a kinda beschemel soup with flavors like worschestershire sauce taste and cheap aromas and whatever in them. Care to add a thought? was thinking of doing something crazy "american" for the family next week and was browsing your hearty meals! thx for reply if you have time!best,daniel

Made this last night with a couple tweaks. I couldn't find any cream of chicken soup so I used Cream of tomato in its place and decided to leave out the can of chopped tomato.I also used a pre-chopped mix of veggies from the grocery store to try to get more veggies in the dish.I also added corn, some black olives and jalapeño peppers. I used corn tortillas. I think corn tortillas are perfect bc if the corners aren't covered with sauce it's no problem, it just gets yummy and crunchy!BIG success! :)

Made this tonight. Turned out great. I always like to change recipes up when I find a good one so substituted a Poblano pepper instead of green bell. Also added 1 jalapeño without seeds. The slightly undercooked veggies definitely make this dish. You did Texas proud. Ps.. love the YouTube channel. Always looking forward to a new recipe.